Hello gang!
I´ve been a little busy building models and I barely showed up around here, but here is my latest baby.
It´s a Spitfire MK IX from Italeri in 1/72nd scale. This Italeri kit has some problems like: the nose is a little bit short (3mm in this scale), the joint between the wing and the fuselage doesn´t have the characterist shape and rivets peculiar to all Spits, but after built it is like a Spitfire MK IX, so i decided to give it a chance and built it!
I painted it for the aircraft of the the free french pilot Pierre Clostermann, DFC, DSO, 33 confirmmed + 12 probable in 420 combat missions. This airplane was part of the no. 602 Squadron "City of Glasglow" during the D-Day operations. Mr Clostermann was the top french ace on WWII and I decided to build this model because Mr Clostermann was born in the city of Curitiba,Brazil!
Yeah! Therefore he is also the top brazilian ace on the WWII too, and the only brazilian to participate on operations during D-Day.
After that, here are some pics, I hope you enjoy them as much as I did building it!
















All comments and critics are welcome!

Regards!

Very nicely built. Two small things; there shouldn't be an aerial wire, since, by the IX, the radio was VHF, and the aerial was short enough to be fitted inside the mast. Definitely not your fault, but the manufacturer's, is the second thing. On the underside of the wing, that "hole," next to the wheel wells, shouldn't be there. It only existed on the VB, and was the receptacle for the used cannon rounds. There was a cover over the hole, which, when removed, allowed the shell cases to fall out. There should be a hole, instead of a plate, immediately behind the cannon, just like the machine guns. One other (very minor) thing; the RAF didn't have a 602nd Squadron, that was the USAAF method of numbering:- 404th., 655th., etc. It was no.602 Squadron.
Edgar

Thanks mr Edgar!
Very helpfull hints, the aerial wire is easy to correct, just tear it down. The hole underwing is another story, I´ll keep it that way, next time I´ll remember it! I´m sorry about the numbering on RAF squadrons, lesson learnned!
My best regards and thank you again for your attention replying!

didn't glosterman also fly tempest at the end of the war?

Nice job Paulo!
Pierre Clostermans story is a fascinating one.His travels from Brazil via South Africa to England to join the Free French.
He was also Frances highest decorated civilian apparently.
Leon,,yes you are correct,,,he did fly Tempests towards the end of the war.
I can highly recommend his book,," The Big Show". Of all the pilots diarys and stories Ive read from all sides his is in my opinion the best. I couldnt put it down and Ive read it many times.
Pierre Closterman passed away on March 22nd 2006.
Nige

I have 2 of the 3 parts of the comic book "The Big Show" from the Biggels line of commic books. i read aswell that he was posted at Volkel AFB at the end of the war from where he flew Tempest's this AFB isn't verry far from my home town. only like 20 minuts drive and my brother is serving the RNLAF on that base as an F-16 mechanic. Its not really releated to the topic but i thought it was a nice thought of how close the war and there hero's was to where we now live without releasing it.

Greetings Léon

Hello all!
I´m glad to hear that you folks liked the Clostermann story as I did!
I also have a Tempest with his marks, but it was made long time ago, so building and painting qualities are much improved now, here are the pics:



This version as I knew later was flow by him AFTER the war, during the war the spinner was in black and it didn´t have all kill markings and naming.
Cheers

Hi Paulo
The Tempest Closterman flew at the end of the war was named "le grand charles"
At the end of hostilities Closterman took his Tempest up for one last flight,and then it was left to its fate.After that last flight Closterman was found in tears in the cockpit.

The relationship between man and machine was over.
Nige

Hi Nige!
I did know about this story, and that´s the model I did! Le Grand Charles was nammed in honor of gal. Charles DeGaulle.
Cheers

Paulo.
In Pierre Clostermans book there are some fabulous anecdotes about his first meetings with De Gaulle
How did you arrive here Closterman?,,,to which he replied,,"by tube Mon General"
Nige

Paulo.
I forgot to mention on earlier posts,,but I like the way youve done the invasion stripes.In most cases these were painted on roughly,,and most modellers tend to make the edges sharp.On the underside of your Spit they arent,,and this is much more realistic
Nige

Hi Paulo:

That Mk IX looks like a Spitfire Mk IX no matter the Italeri kit failures. Welldone, very nice buid Cogratulations.
Good data, I didn´t know that Mr, Closterman was born in Curitiba.

Here is a drawing of your aircraft:

July 4, 1944. The Argentine volunteer pilot Kent Charney shoot down his
first german airplane flying its Spitfite IXB (LO-B) escort by the Ace Pierre
Clostermann (LO-D) over the Normandie skies.

Hola Carlos!
And I didn´t know about this story you told.... There is another brazilian pilot who served in the RAF, I didn´t remember his name right now, but he also was born in Curitiba and his parents were english, during the war he went to England and join the RAF and became a bomber pilot, unffortunatelly he was missing in action. I don´t know if have any profile of his aircraft (I guess was a Lancaster, but I´m not sure!), It´s interesting that there was a motto he used to say to his friends, it was " Never a dull"....
I´ll try to check more of it soon!
Cheers

Carlos and others mates, look what I found!
Floow the link bellow:
http://ipmscuritiba.com.br/nova/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=166&Itemid=26

Wing Commander Cosme Lockwood Gomm, DSO, DFC 467 Squadron

He studied in an english school on Argentina.....

Let´s see if we can find a profile of his aircraft...

467 Squadron only flew Lancasters; there are Squadron Profiles, on some Bomber Command Squadrons, including 467. The shop, in the RAF Museum, sells (or sold) these profiles, and I've seen them in Midland Counties bookstore. Probably because they're slim paperbacks, there are no ISBN numbers (at least the one, on 617 Squadron, doesn't have one.)
Edgar

Hi Edgar!
Nice to hear that! Do you know if this profile is available over the internet?
Have you read the story?
Cheers

Somehow, I, very much, doubt it. Those books are, I suspect, virtually a one-man operation. I hope to go to the RAF Museum, and Midland Counties, within the next few weeks, so I'll see if they're still around, and get some idea of the contents.
The full Squadron record is held at the National Archive (used to be the Public Records Office, but that doesn't sound grand, enough, any more!) All of the Operational Records Books are on microfilm, now, since they were suffering, due to the excessive handling that they were getting; I have no idea if they can be accessed via the net.
"S for Sugar," the Lancaster PO-S, R5868, in the RAF Museum, is an ex-476 Squadron Lancaster, by the way.

Hi Paulo:

Very intresting data. Thank you !

I have the book of Claudio Meunier, its name is Alas de Trueno (Wings of Thunder). It´s a great book, with a really fine edition. I higly recomend it to everyone interested in RAF, RCAF and WW2.

http://www.firmesvolamos.com.ar/home.php

Great build and a very interesting story. I had never heard of him before.

Thanks for sharing

Yes!
There is some great stories about WWII that we doesn´t have any idea! But this is what make our hobby so funny and so cultural at same time, the research!
Cheers and thanks for the comments!